


Hope is Stronger Than a Thousand Men

by thesonder



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Childbirth, Complications, F/M, Hurt Natasha Romanov, Idiots in Love, Pregnant Natasha Romanov, Protective Steve Rogers, childbirth aint no joke kids, dont read this if youre squeamish, i lowkey hate this, steve gave his baby the super serum genes, this is kinda icky
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-22
Updated: 2020-06-22
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:53:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24863365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesonder/pseuds/thesonder
Summary: When Natasha goes into labour in the middle of the night, what started out as a peaceful  trip towards parenthood becomes a little more complex when Steve's super serum causes complications in the birth. Hours pass and morale is dwindling away, but Natasha eventually realises that it doesn't matter how long it takes, because in the end she will have a child. A child that represents hope. And hope is stronger than a thousand men.Very angsty and intense at first but the fluff at the end makes it worth it I promise. Set (roughly) between Winter Soldier and Age of Ultron but you could be flexible I guess.Just another romanogers baby fiction :')
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Natasha Romanov
Comments: 8
Kudos: 194





	Hope is Stronger Than a Thousand Men

**Author's Note:**

> If you're squeamish around things like childbirth, this probably isn't the fic for you, but you could just skip to the end.
> 
> Tried to keep this relatively clean but Natasha does do some good mouthing off in Russian so just don't... look it up on google translate or anything, I guess.
> 
> Enjoy!

Natasha wakes with a start. At first she has no idea why, until the familiar stirring in her stomach suddenly changes, ripples and transforms into a twisting pain that starts squeezing her insides, pulling them this way and that. Natasha gasps quietly at the foreign pain, sitting up instantly and wrapping an arm around the large swell of her stomach. The horrible sensation tugs at the insides of her stomach, before spreading up around her lower back and upper thighs. It remains there, taunting her and causing her to hold her breath to keep from crying out. It stays for what seems like forever, before fading, ebbing away like a shadow in the wind. Hands shaking slightly, Natasha looks down at her stomach, round below the thin bedsheet and strokes it cautiously. 

“Hey.” she whispers lightly to the life inside. “What’re you doing?” 

Of course she knows the baby can’t understand her, but maybe, _hopefully_ the sound of her voice will still the moving child. Hopefully, because it is far too soon for anything more to happen. _Far. Too. Soon._ She can’t afford to go into labour right now. It is absolutely _not an option_.  
The pain Natasha had felt briefly is gone, but she still feels strange. Her whole body feels alive, electric, and it’s like she can feel every atom that touches her skin, taste every particle in the air. A coppery type taste fills Natasha’s mouth, not unlike blood, but she is not bleeding. Now her mind and body are alive, more alive than she has ever been, Natasha knows that sleep will not be an option tonight. 

Glancing first at the clock, which blinks back the numbers _03:09_ , she turns to her right to see her partner, Steve, unsurprisingly sprawled across half the bed on his stomach, face smushed into the pillow. _Very attractive, love. Well done._ She reaches forward to tug the sheets that had slipped down his legs and pull them back up and over his back in an affectionate gesture. Steve snorts roughly before returning to a steady snore. Shaking her head in loving disbelief, Natasha swings her legs out from under the covers and round to the floor, sitting on the side of the bed. There’s no point waking Steve for one slight pain. She doubts she _could_ , even if she wanted to. Not even a marching band can wake Steve Rogers up when he is in that deep of a sleep. 

Nat stays sitting on the edge of the bed for a while, gazing out into the grayscale of rolling hills that surround the Avengers compound outside the window. But when she eventually gets to her feet, a huge shift deep in her abdomen causes her to gasp again and then her knees give way. Her hand catches her, propping her up on the dresser next to her with a loud bang, but Natasha can’t push herself up just yet for the pain, her mouth slightly agape and staring at her belly. The baby has moved. Like, _moved._ Her whole stomach looks distended in a new way now, hanging low on her hips. 

_Oh hell no._ , she thinks, and a strong concoction of fear, anger and denial, fills her chest like a balloon. Once she is sure nothing else unexpected will happen, she pushes herself up and waddles as fast and as silently as she can towards the nursery. When she enters, she doesn’t bother to turn on the light, and just heads straight towards the large, cushioned rocking chair which she has claimed in the most recent weeks of her pregnancy, as it cradles her sore hips and back. When she sinks into it, she has to stifle a groan. It’s so _comfortable_. As she settles back into it, arms around the base of her belly, she closes her eyes, focusing on the now fading pain and irregular kicks from her baby and imploring it to stay inside.

After a few minutes of this, the baby suddenly stills, and Natasha is given barely a second to register what’s happening before the pain hits. She jerks forward as it assaults her with a speed unmatched to the last one, the pain stabbing her slowly and surely, spreading like hot fire around her body. Her whole body tenses and her face scrunches up against it.

“Oww.” she whines under her breath. 

“Ms Romanoff.” comes a voice from somewhere Natasha can’t locate. JARVIS. He has seen her wake, fall in her room and now hunched over in pain.

“JARVIS, I’m fine. Go to sleep, or…whatever it is you do.” she murmurs, knowing he can hear her. 

“Ms Romanoff I would recommend you alert someone that you are in pain. My systems hint at the beginning of labour.”

“ _Hint_ , JARVIS, you see? We don’t _know_ yet. And I am not going to wake anyone until we know for sure.” she waggles a finger towards the ceiling.

“You have spiked a fever Ms Romanoff, and are in quite a visible amount of pain. Your heartrate is remaining at around the 120 mark and your blood pressure is also raised. I would strongly recommend you wake someone up.”

“Nuh-uh.” Natasha protests, only just now realising that she has broken out in a sweat. “I will not, and neither will you, JARVIS, or so help your soul.” 

There is a long pause. “Very well, Ms Romanoff. As you wish.” the voice comes steadily, before cutting out completely. 

Natasha’s face screws up as the pain peaks, and then fades away. She glares down at her belly.

“You stop that. _Now._ ” but there is no reply of movement from inside.

The next few hours feel like days. The waves of pain come irregularly, sometimes leaving for as long as half an hour before returning with full force again, and again. She stays in her seat, cradling her belly and taking the pains (she refuses to call them contractions) as they come. 

When she opens her eyes again, the sun is actually beginning to rise. Steve doesn’t wake until late, so she still has time, but the pains aren’t leaving. And they’re getting worse. “JARVIS?” she calls into the silence once a wave of agony has passed, leaving her washed up on the shore.

“Here, Ms Romanoff.” 

“What’s the time?” 

“It is nearing seven am, Ms Romanoff.”

“Uh huh.” she pants, squeezing her hand into fists. “And what are my stats? I know you’ve been recording them.”

“I have confirmed that these are in fact contractions, Ms Romanoff. You have gone into labour. Although irregular, they are steady in pain and strength, and I estimate that your waters may break soon.”

“ _Fabulous._ ” she says with gritted teeth. “How’s my blood pressure?”

“Still high. Your fever reached 102 degrees about an hour ago but has lowered slightly now.” 

“Okay.” she says. The word echoes in her head. _Okay._

“Why’d you have to do this to me, little _chudo_? Hm? You’re supposed to stay in there at least until October.” she whispers down to her stomach, before taking a deep breath in. “Okay.”

She gets to her feet and heads slowly and cautiously back to the bedroom. Steve is still stretched out on his stomach across the mattress, unmoving since she last saw him. His white t-shirt and grey shorts are visible again, and the sheet Natasha had put over him lies discarded on the bed next to him again. Natasha gets back into bed, carefully, and settles down, preparing herself. Then she pokes Steve.

He mumbles, but remains asleep, so she pokes him again, then slaps him lightly. Then slaps him harder. His hand reaches out groggily and waves her away, but she grabs it in her iron grip and twists his wrist backwards. He wakes with a yelp, retracting his hand as he jerks to a sitting position.

“Hey!” 

“Morning soldier.” she smiles wearily. Steve looks her up and down, taking in her tired eyes and the bags beneath them.

“Are you okay?” he asks, concern tinting his voice.

“Ehh… I’ve been better. I’ve been having contractions though, and I'm in labour. I think we should call Dr Cho.” she says, matter of factly.

Steve eyes almost pop out of his head. He looks in alarm down at Natasha’s baby bump and then back up at her. “ _What?_ For how long? Why didn’t you wake me?”

“I… I just wanted to be sure.” she says in a small voice. Steve looks at her belly and up and her again. 

“We’re having a baby?” 

Natasha smiles at his pure excitement. “We’re having a baby.” she nods. 

Steve helps Natasha get what she might need together and calls Dr Cho, who agrees to meet them in the medical wing of the tower, a couple flights up. By the time they arrive there, Natasha’s contractions have come back and are rendering her immobile as she hunches over in pain each time they come. Once Steve has got them into a large and spacious, but private room at the far end of the medical wing, he helps her onto the bed and calls Dr Cho to see where she is. When she confirms that she is five minutes out, he hangs up and turns to Natasha. She sits on the bed, teeth gritted and she bears her way through another strong contraction.

“Hey, hey.” he says, rushing over and slipping an arm around her. She collapses into his strong, warm shoulder, as her body trembles with exertion. “How long did you say this has been going on?” 

“S…since three… in the morning.” she stutters, her hand clutching at his white shirt like a lifeline. This he had kept on, but he had replaced his grey boxer shorts with blue jeans before they left.

“Oh Nat.” he sighs, pulling her close and planting a kiss on her head. “You could have woken me up. I wouldn’t have minded.” 

“M…m…maybe I should have. It’s too late now.”

“I’m here, though. And that’s what counts.” he tells her, and the door opens behind them. 

Dr Cho comes in, white jacket and pink scrubs on and walks towards them. 

“What do we have here then? Somebody having a baby?” she smiles cheerfully as she takes a seat at the foot of the bed. 

“She’s been having contractions for a while now. But her water hasn’t broken yet.” Steve tells Dr Cho, who gets to her feet and starts activating a number of machines spaced around the bed.

“Alllright. Let’s do an ultrasound to see if baby’s in a good place, then get a heart monitor on that baby and see what’s up, shall we? How far apart would you say your contractions are Natasha?”

Natasha leans back on the bed as another one passes. “Really close. Like, three minutes close.” 

Dr Cho nods as she pulls up Natasha’s shirt and squirts the cold gel on it, gently moving it around with the ultrasound wand. Soon enough, the rapid swooshing of their baby’s heartbeat fills the room.

“Okay, then. Yes, look, if you see here, your baby has turned. They’re head first, which is what we want. If your water hasn’t already broken, it should soon. From there, you’ll start dilating, and once we’re at ten, we’ll start pushing. Sound good?” she asks the two, cleaning the gel off Natasha’s belly and pushing the machine away from the bed. Both of them nod. “Natasha, if I could ask you to get into this gown, things will be a lot easier for both me and you, and then we can set you up in the room properly. Okay?” 

Dr Cho hands Natasha a mint green hospital gown and then leaves the room. Steve helps Natasha sit up and swing her legs off the bed. She waddles over to the bathroom close by as Steve begins unpacking the things they had brought with them in the hospital bag. JARVIS’ voice echoes in the room. “Captain Rogers. Would you like me to alert the Avengers to the situation?”

“Uhhh, depends. Who’s awake?” 

“Clint Barton is currently eating breakfast, as is Bruce Banner and Sam Wilson. Tony Stark and Pepper Potts are just waking up.” 

“Okay. Tell ‘em. But make sure they don’t come see Nat. I have a feeling she doesn’t want visitors right now.”

“Of course, sir.”

Just as Steve is folding a large blue t-shirt of Nat’s, there comes a shout from the bathroom, followed by a pained cry. Steve sprints into the bathroom, where he finds Natasha in her gown, staring down at the floor where a puddle of clear liquid lies. She looks up with a frightened expression at Steve.

“My water broke.” 

As if Steve hadn’t already figured that out.

“Quick, come on.” He holds out his hand and helps Natasha over the puddle and out of the bathroom before the contraction hits. 

So much worse. So much worse than before. 

Everything that she had felt in her previous contractions is multiplied by 5, 10, 100, and is accompanied by an intense pressure that presses down unbearably on Natasha’s hips. She yells and bends over, Steve’s arm around her waist the only thing keeping her from falling down. Nausea swirls in her stomach and head and she gags, but doesn’t throw up. 

“Steve!” she calls out in alarm, her voice breaking. 

“I know, I know! Just get to the bed, come on.” He half leads her, half carries her to the bed before smashing the red call button on the wall. Natasha lets out a choked cry as the agony spikes up and up and up, rendering her blind for a few seconds as it storms through her body. This time, it lasts for longer and Natasha lets out a frustrated yell as the pain continues and continues, before finally, _finally_ ebbing away. Her body is left in a state of shock in the aftermath, and she looks up at Steve desperately, with tears in her eyes. 

Steve has never seen her in so much pain, her body curling in on itself, searching for but finding no escape. When Dr Cho comes in, he speaks to her with panic in his voice.

“Her water broke just now but the pain, it’s really, really bad. Please, do something. She can’t go on like this.”

“Okay, well. Let’s attach this monitor and get set up, okay?” 

In between the blinding, burning, agonising contractions, Dr Cho binds a think fabric belt around Natasha’s belly, which attaches to a machine above her head and shows the baby’s heartrate and decels live. She also sets patches up on Natasha’s chest to check her heartrate while in labour, as well as her other vitals. When the data starts showing up, a hint of alarm crosses in Dr Cho’s face but she covers it well.

“Okay, Natasha. You’re heart rate is very high, as well as your blood pressure, so I’m gonna set up a drip with some medicines to lower them, hopefully, as well as a cannula to make sure you get good oxygen.”

Dr Cho’s voice is more serious now, and the room is silent as she puts in the IV into Natasha’s arm and sets up the cannula, the exception being occasional gasps from Natasha. 

When she leaves again, Natasha lets down her guard and groans loudly and painfully. 

“Hey, hey.” Steve comforts her, rubbing his hand up and down her arm again.

“Steve, I don’t think it’s supposed to be like this.” Natasha murmurs, once the contraction has passed and she has got her breath back.

“What do you mean, sweetheart?”

“It feels… wrong… I don’t know… I really don’t think it’s supposed to be this painful.”

“I’m gonna see if we can get you some painkillers, alright?”

“Don’t…want…painkillers…” Natasha protests, her head falling back onto the pillow.

“Natasha, at the rate things are going at the moment, I don’t know if it will be a matter of whether you want them or not. You might just need them.”

Natasha is silent for a moment, her hand moving to cradle her bare belly again. “They’ve gone still, Steve. They’re usually so active…I… just…they’ve never been this still before.”

Steve’s hand joins hers over the base of her belly. The kicks which he had always felt there before, are absent, and he can’t feel even a stirring of movement. He glances up at his baby’s heartrate, which remains steady and consistent and then back down to Natasha. 

“Maybe they’re just getting ready to say hello.” Steve smiles. He doesn’t really know why the baby is so still, but hopes this flimsy excuse will placate Natasha. However, before she can answer, she is hit by another contraction and grunts in pain as she sits up, the pain mounting up and up. Steve supports her back with one hand and takes her hand in the other as she squeezes it as tight as she can. Which happens to be very, very, tight, Steve finds out.

As the contraction reaches its peak, Natasha cries out again. Not loud, but loud enough to tear a little portion of Steve’s heart. 

The door behind them opens and Dr Cho reenters, but Steve never could have prepared for who would follow her. Bruce Banner shuffles in sheepishly behind Dr Cho as they reach the bed in the centre of the room. Steve looks incredulously towards Cho, who opens her mouth to explain.

“I don’t want you guys to worry, but I thought I might need Dr Banner in here for some help. You see, recently, in one of your ultrasounds, I saw a change in your child’s DNA, which I suspected nothing of at first. But when I contacted Dr Banner, he insisted we look closer at it. This is something that we all saw as a possibility, but your child inherited Steve here’s super serum and it has slightly altered its DNA. I didn’t think this would be a complication until now, but I believe it is hindering your labour, Natasha. It might be the reason for your fever and your heightened pain, so I went and got Banner because he is much more knowledgeable of the subject and could give some well needed information.” Dr Cho explains. Steve looks from Cho to Bruce.

“Are they okay? The baby? Are they going to be okay?” he questions Bruce.

“Your baby should be fine. It is Natasha we are a little worried about.” Bruce ensures, before stepping past Dr Cho and approaching the machines set up around Natasha’s bed. “I’m gonna need to do another ultrasound, is that okay?” 

Natasha nods mutely. Bruce sets up the machine and puts the wand on Natasha’s belly. When Bruce finds the baby and Steve hears the heartbeat again, he relaxes slightly. But Natasha doesn’t. Steve sees on a machine tracking her contractions that the lines have spiked up again and Natasha is having a contraction, a strong one, but she is silent and still because she doesn’t want to disturb Bruce, or show any signs of weakness. And it is showing in her face. Her lips are pursed, desperately shut against the scream begging to rip from her throat. Her eyes are squeezed shut and her grip on Steve’s hand tightens and tightens, the pressure replacing the relief that screaming would have otherwise offered her. A sheen of sweat coats her forehead as she braces against the intense pain. Meanwhile, Bruce is clicking on the machine, zooming in on a long string of what Steve assumes is his child’s DNA, swiping and turning dials below the picture. 

After a about a minute more of this, Bruce discards the images that he had been examining previously and turns to Natasha.  
“Good news and bad news, I think. Good news is that your baby is very strong, very healthy and all round a good baby. Bad news is that because your baby is strong, they are also extremely resistant, and have transferred this defection to the body they share, which is of course your body, Natasha. Any medication we give you to help you dilate faster or relieve pain would most likely have little or no effect at all. This is all going to have to be relatively natural. It will also not be normal. The labour is probably maybe two or three times more powerful due to the serum, and will consequently last a long time. For now, what we can do is try and start you on some low level pain medication and at least attempt some medicine to get you to dilate. But, this is mainly going to be a waiting game.” Bruce finishes dejectedly, looking pityingly towards the two not-so-soon-to-be parents. 

Steve’s heart sinks, but he nods that he understands. Natasha says nothing, and after the two doctors administer a drip for more medication and leave, she continues to remain silent. Steve positions himself on the edge of the bed, his body slightly behind Natasha’s as she leans against him.

“Nat, I’m so sorry-"

“Uh-uh. Don’t you start apologising. I never thought I would even be able to have kids, so it’s a miracle that we’re even in this situation in the first place. Don’t apologise. You gave me a child. You do not apologise for that.” Natasha says sternly, pointing a finger behind her to where Steve is. 

“But it’s my serum that’s making you-"

“Shh! Did you not hear me, Rogers? No buts. Now shut up and get me a damn cloth because the sweat is _literally_ running down my face.”  
Steve obeys, wetting a cloth and bringing it over to wipe away the sweat from Nat’s forehead.

“I knew there was a reason why they were so still. He or she is preparing to annihilate my body.”

Steve chuckles quietly. “Of course you knew. You always do.”

* * *

Outside the room, down the hall in a small communal area, the remaining Avengers are congregated. Clint, Sam, Tony and Pepper, Thor and now Bruce sit in various places around the room, contemplating in silence, and waiting. What for, they’re not exactly sure, but they remain seated all the same. After a few minutes, the screaming begins. That’s what shocks the Avengers more than anything else, because not one of them, not even Steve, has ever heard Natasha scream like that. She is always the dry humoured, tough-as-nails, redheaded assassin. Never vulnerable, never in pain. But this scream. Loud, unrestrained, low and guttural, but still a scream. And from then on, it never stops. 

All the Avengers look up in shock at first hearing the sound, exchanging frightened glances with each other before all staring down the hall to where Natasha and Steve’s room is. It is unmistakably Natasha’s voice, but it seems unnatural, because Natasha’s voice has never fit a scream, for them. To them, she’s the Black Widow. And the Black Widow doesn’t scream, doesn’t visibly show pain. She hides it, or ignores it, buries it deep down. She doesn’t let it out like this, in a shrieks of pain that echo jarringly down the hall. It’s a horrifying sound, and it doesn’t stop. The contractions must be really close now.

* * *

Back in the hospital room, Natasha collapses back after a round of shrieking and Steve wipes the sweat off her forehead, brushing back her hair lovingly. Natasha looks up at Steve and her eyes are like a scared child. It breaks Steve’s heart to see the woman he loves so vulnerable, so broken.

“Steve,” she moans, her voice breaking as tears threaten to spill from her eyes. “Steve, please. Help me.”

Steve’s fear turns to shock. He has never once heard Natasha ask for help, or assistance of any kind. Not once. It makes his heart hurt even more and he tightens his grip around Natasha shoulders and kisses her fervently on the forehead.

“I’m so sorry, Natalia. I’m so sorry. If I could take all the pain away right now, I would, I promise. Just hold on. Just… think about our little baby.” he murmurs into her hair. Natasha lets out a muffled sob as the tears overcome her and fall down her face. 

She pants for breath between her sobs and then lurches forward as another contraction charges through her. Steve’s arm catches her across her front and she pushes against it as she releases a long scream, catches her breath, and screams again. Her arms clutch at Steve’s clothes as she grits her teeth and cries out again.  
The next few hours pass in a similar way. Steve holds Natasha in place as she writhes and screams against the contractions coursing their way through her. When midday rolls around, she is still only three centimetres dilated. Steve’s stomach rumbles and his body begs for relief, but he’ll be damned if he leaves Natasha’s side for one single moment. Dr Cho urges the waiting Avengers to go and do what they need to do, continue with their day, informs them that Natasha will be here for a while and that she will notify them if anything changes. No matter how far away the Avengers get however, Natasha’s screams still follow them everywhere.

As the afternoon passes through, Natasha’s health deteriorates. Being in this much pain for this long has begun to take its toll on her body. Her fever spikes to 104 degrees, she begins throwing up what little she has in her stomach, and she struggles to stay conscious most of the time. Dr Cho and Banner pump as many medicines as they can into Natasha to keep her nutrition up and try and dilate her faster, but time is soon running out. This baby has to make its way out soon, or Natasha is going to need surgery.

Night falls, and Natasha has been in labour for over fifteen hours. Dr Cho decided to sedate her for a couple of hours to allow her mind to rest and for Steve to get a well needed break. He ate, drank, showered and changed into some cleaner clothes, while Natasha was monitored by Dr Cho. There was a small worry that the baby was not getting enough oxygen, to which Banner assured them that because of the serum, the baby’s body would manually extract oxygen from Natasha’s blood if it needed it, and that they should have no cause for concern. 

When Natasha wakes up, Steve is on a chair next to the bed, his head resting on the sheets next to her hand which he holds in his own. It is evident when she wakes because her heartbeat skyrockets on the machine next to the bed. Steve starts awake and immediately sits up, attending to Natasha, who had begun to hunch over in extreme discomfort again. 

“Oh God,” she says, her voice rising. “Der'mo, blyad'! Bozhe moy!” she exclaims in Russian, then spews a long line of swear words in first Latin, then Italian and what sounds like _Norwegian_ to Steve before switching back to English. “Steve, get Cho! I need to push, I feel like I need to – go!”

Steve jumps to his feet and runs out the door into the pitch black corridor, looking this way and that. Thankfully, Dr Cho had heard Natasha’s exclamations and was already on her way down the hall. “She awake?” she calls, breaking into a jog as she nears the room. 

Steve nods. “She says she needs to push.” 

When Steve reenters the room accompanied by Dr Cho, Natasha has sat up on the bed and her chin is on her chest, face scrunched up in the exertion of bearing down. 

“No, no! Natasha stop!” Dr Cho rushes over, pulling on her gloves as fast as she can as she reaches the bed. “Natasha, I need you to stop pushing. Natasha, can you do that? Stop pushing.” Dr Cho instructs, taking a seat at the end of the bed as Steve takes his place at the head. Natasha frowns exasperatedly.

“Please…” 

“Natasha, I need to check if you are dilated. If you are, we can start pushing, but if you’re not you could seriously hurt yourself by pushing, okay?” Dr Cho nods at Natasha, who shakily nods back. “Good. Okay… Right. The good news is that you are nine centimeters dilated, which means it should be a very short time until we start pushing okay?” 

Natasha gives a strained nod, returning to concentrating on trying not to push. When Cho leaves again, Steve turns towards her, taking his seat back on the side of the bed and taking Natasha’s hand in his. The two are silent for a while, the contact of their hands skin to skin enough talking for the both of them. Steve lifts Natasha’s hand to his lips and kisses it lightly.

“What’s the time, Steve? It’s dark outside.” Natasha pants between the contractions.

“Yes, it is. It’s around a quarter to twelve right now.” Steve says, glancing towards the clock.

“Wow.”

“Wow indeed.” Steve echoes. 

“Are the others asleep?”

“I don’t know. Cho told them to carry on with their day while you were dilating. I don’t know if she’s told them you’ll be pushing soon.” Steve comments, brushing a loose strand of Natasha’s fiery hair away from her face.

“JARVIS?” Natasha calls out. 

“Yes, Ms Romanoff?”

“Do us a favour and let the others know when it looks like I’m about to pop out a baby, won’t you?” Natasha gasps as a particularly sharp pain digs into her lower back. 

“Will do, Agent Romanoff.” The AI assures her.

When the need to push becomes unbearable, Natasha slaps Steve on the arm repeatedly as an indicator to go and get Dr Cho. He runs out and comes back with her within seconds. 

“Alright. Let’s have a baby, shall we?” Dr Cho says as she enters. She pulls on a fresh pair of gloves and dials a number on a landline phone in far corner. Before long, a couple of nurses enter. “These guys are gonna be caring for your baby once he or she is out, while I stay down here and make sure everything goes okay. Sound good?”

Nat nods and Steve helps her reposition on the bed as Dr Cho drapes a large blue sheet of paper over Natasha’s legs. Steve assumes that the bottom of the bed has magically disappeared, he really has no idea, but he doesn’t let himself worry about it for too long. The nurses have pulled out a tall, crib like contraption which Steve assumes his baby will be put in and are busy arranging blankets and oxygen to prepare for the arrival. 

“You understand this process could take a while, considering this is your first child, and they have inherited the super serum?” Cho asks, as she and Steve help lift Natasha’s legs into the air and onto some low stirrups. Natasha nods, still not saying anything.

Beyond anything, she is scared. Not excited, as she can bet Steve is, or that she feels she should be, at the prospect of the imminent arrival of her first child. No, she feels frightened. She was never cut out for being a mother and yet here she is, becoming one. She doesn’t know how to care for a child and if Steve wasn’t here to help her, and love and support her this whole way, she probably would be refusing to push her baby out right now, so fearful that she is unfit to be a mother. But with Steve, at least she has a little hope. If there’s one thing he’s taught her, it’s that ‘hope is stronger than a thousand men’. On any given day. So when the next contraction comes with an unwavering force of pressure, she leans into it determinedly, and bears down as hard as she can.

Dr Cho counts with her as she pushes. _One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten._ And she falls back into the pillows in relief, gasping for air. She is greeted with exclamations of “You’re doing so well!” and “Good job!” from the doctors and Steve and Cho. This small process repeats and repeats as Natasha pushes, and then rests, and the baby is moving down, slowly. But at least they are _moving_. 

The early hours of the morning of the twenty-sixth of September arrive peacefully and quietly, unnoticed by the two superheroes about to welcome their first child into the world. The birds outside sing their usual string of melodies, the rest of the world falling silent as an incredible event takes place in room ten of the medical wing. The wind rustles the leaves of the trees, and the sweet, rich scent of early morning dew fills the fresh, cool air. Unbeknownst to the world, a rather remarkable child is about to make their entrance into the world. 

“And, push!” Cho commands, and Natasha obeys. It burns, all of it, and her whole body is being set alight in flames. She shrieks as she pushes, and pushes, and pushes. She feels the head slip out at the same time as the contraction ends. Falling back again, she pants and sniffs as Steve kisses her on the head.  
“Come on, were so nearly there. You’re so nearly done.”

And it hits Natasha too, that they are nearly done. These past eight or so months, all leading up to now, and they’re almost done. It’s all almost over. And she can’t wait. 

She leans forward with newfound strength and her lips pulls back from her teeth as she bears down again, and grunts, takes a breath, pushes again. She can feel it, the tiny body, as it slips free and she shouts aloud as it is finally removed from her body, gone, and in Dr Cho’s arms.

The cry is instantaneous, and loud, and so distinctly, uniquely beautiful. Outside the room, the Avengers all simultaneously look up in quite celebration and excitement at the noise. It is the noise of hope. Inside the room, Natasha’s smile is widest of all.

Dr Cho immediately pushes the baby up and onto Natasha’s chest and the new mother’s arms fold around it as the nurses and doctors throw towels and blankets on top of the screaming child, rubbing the blood and fluids off its squawking pink body. Natasha looks at her child for the first time and it’s like fireworks explode in her chest. She peeks under the towel and smiles widely, looking up at Steve.

“I was right. It’s a boy.”

Steve laughs in joy and excitement and pure bliss as he reaches a hand down to stroke the kicking baby’s face. “It’s a boy. We have a son.” he says, as though struggling to believe it. 

“Hiya, bubba.” Natasha says in a high-pitched voice to the little baby, whose fists are now flailing in the air. Helped by Steve and the nurses, she manages to slide their son under her gown so they can be skin to skin. As soon as his cheek touches Natasha’s skin, the baby quietens down, his button mouth opening wide and his tongue sticking right out. Both Steve and Natasha laugh in amusement. The nurse puts a tiny hat on the baby’s head to keep it warm, and lays a couple more blankets over Natasha’s chest where the baby lies. Steve tucks in closer beside Natasha, both eyes transfixed on their newborn son. 

“We’ve been waiting a long time to meet you, little man.” Steve murmurs, rubbing a hand up and down the baby’s back. He snuffles quietly in response, and his bleary eyes open, eyelids flickering a lot in reaction to the bright hospital lights and the gunk that has glued them shut. Steve’s puts forward a little finger and cautiously clears most of the goo from around the baby’s eyes, so they can open properly. When, they do, Natasha sees the exact same colour blue that she fell in love with all that time ago.

“He has your eyes!” she whispers reverently to Steve. “I told you he would look like you...! He has blonde hair too, look!” she says, peeping under the hat that had been placed on his head. A couple light blonde wisps of hair lie underneath. “I totally lucked out with this one.” Natasha jokes, and Steve chuckles.

“Heya, new parents. As absolutely adorable as I’m sure your new baby is, I would love to deliver the afterbirth as soon as possible so we can get you cleaned up, so if it’s okay with you guys, were gonna hand little mini Cap to these nurses who are gonna take care of him while we sort you out. Does that sound okay?” Cho says from the foot of the bed. 

“Yeah. Yeah, that’s okay.” Natasha says, letting the nurses lift the baby gently from her chest. “JARVIS?” she calls to the AI.

“Congratulations, Ms Romanoff. How can I help you?” 

“What time was the little one born, if you please?” 

“You gave birth at 02:28:04 hrs on the twenty-sixth of September, Ms Romanoff, to a healthy baby boy.” 

Natasha smiles widely. “Thanks JARVIS.”

“My pleasure, Ms Romanoff.”

* * *

By the time Natasha had delivered the afterbirth and had been sewn up by Dr Cho, as well as being administered some effective pain meds now that the baby was out, it was already around three am. That meant it had been 24 hours. And Natasha had been in labour for 23 of them. Exhausted, but in a blissful, relatively pain free state of euphoria, Natasha had settled down with Steve to welcome their new son to the world. 

Natasha successfully nursed him for the first time without a hitch, had been taught how to burp him gently, and now Black Widow and Captain America’s child lay on the latter’s bare chest under a deluge of blankets, getting a well-deserved nap. Being born isn’t easy, you know.

Natasha is on the bed, propped up by a number of pillows and gazing in adoration at the love of her life, who is sitting in a rocking chair holding the other love of her life against his bare chest. 

“So… what are we going to name him?” Natasha asks.

Steve looks up from staring at his sleeping son. “I don’t know… we never decided on anything. Do you have any ideas?” 

“Well… I had one for a boy, but I wanted to see how he turned out to be like before I decided. I didn’t know if it would be right. But I think it is.”

“What is it?” Steve asks, slowly rocking back onto his chair as he holds his son.

“I wanted to name him James.”

The expression on Steve’s face is almost comical. He looks at her in shock, but then his face softens and he looks back down at his son’s sleeping face.

“James…”

“I thought, for Bucky, I mean…”

“Yeah, yeah… I know…” he trails off, still looking at his son. Natasha waits for him to continue but he doesn’t.

“I just thought…it’s silly, we can change it-“ she begins, but Steve interrupts her.

“No, no! I love it! I mean… it’s perfect.” Steve says, looking up with tears in his eyes. “James.”

“James Rogers.”

“Rogers? Are you sure? I mean, don’t you want to give him your name as well?” Steve asks, absentmindedly tugging James’ hat down on his head while looking at Natasha.

“No. No, I don’t.” Natasha decides. “My name just reminds me of my past, and who I used to be. You are my future, your name is my future. And now James is also my future, so I want to give him your name.” she finishes.

“If you’re sure…” 

“I’m sure.” she nods defiantly.

“What about a middle name?” Steve asks, and the two fall silent in thought.

“I've got it.” Natasha stifles a smile.

“What? What is it?” Steve asks eagerly.

“Well, it's actually two. I was thinking one of them can be Samuel, or Sam, and one Clinton, or Clint."

Steve looks up in delight at Natasha. “Really? You think? They'd absolutely love that.” 

"I'll bet. Plus we named our kid after them, so they'd automatically have to love him.” Natasha smiles again. 

"And they can protect him, because, hell, we know he'll need it." Steve says a little sadly as he looks down at his baby boy. 

"It's perfect then. James Samuel Clinton Rogers." Natasha announces. 

"James Samuel Clinton Rogers." Steve echoes, and they both smile simultaneously.

The new parents settle into a comfortable silence. 

“If I might interrupt, the remaining Avengers are waiting rather eagerly to meet the new addition. Might I let them in?” JARVIS’ voice speaks over the intercoms.

“Oh yeah, yeah, of course. I forgot.” Natasha says, holding out her hands to Steve. “Here, give James to me so you can put a shirt on.”

Steve gets up carefully, and hands the baby over to Natasha, who wraps him back up in a blanket, much to James’ dismay. He’s been in the world for barely two hours and already hates being wrapped up. Explains why he kicked so much when Natasha was pregnant. The little man can’t stand being cooped up. 

There is a knock on the door, and Steve calls, “Come in!” as he looks around the room, trying to find a shirt to put on. When the Avengers enter in a little single-file line, Steve is just pulling a plain t-shirt over his head, and he hears Tony wolf whistle. 

“Shut it, Stark.” he mutters jokingly as he fiddles with his tousled hair and walks over to Natasha holding their son on the bed, who is now surrounded by the Avengers. They coo and compliment James’ tiny features in a jumble of voices, before Clint speaks up.

“So, what is it? Boy or girl?” Clint asks, looking round at Steve and back at Nat.

“It’s a boy.” Natasha grins, to whoops of celebration from the men in the room. 

“We, got, a little Cap! We, got, a little Cap!” Tony sings, his hands in the air. Natasha shushes the rowdy group as James whimpers in her arms and they fall silent immediately. 

“Have you picked out any names yet? Decided on one?” Pepper asks.

“Is it Tony Jr? It better be Tony Jr or I’m suing.” Tony points at Natasha, eyebrows furrowed. She laughs lightly.

“It’s not Tony Jr.” Natasha says, to a jokily outraged Tony.

Sam walks round the other side of the bed to clap Steve on the shoulder. “You guys can all relax, we all know its Samuel.” 

“Well, not quite mate.” 

Sam boos and pouts, sticking out a thumbs down. 

“His name is James Rogers.” Steve caves in, revealing their son’s name.

"And some of y'all are about to be real mad at us for his middle names." Natasha grins. 

"Name- _s_?" Clint picks up on the slip.

"He has two middle names. His full name is James Samuel Clinton Rogers." 

Natasha can't help but laugh at the chaos this revelation causes. Sam and Clint cheer loudly and punch the air in victory, Clint high-fiving Natasha, while Tony, Thor and the others gasp in outrage and begin clammoring over each other in mock arguements. When James begins to fuss on Natasha's chest she holds up a hand to shut them up, shushing them angrily. They immediately obey, temporarily tamed. 

“That’s a beautiful name, Natasha.” Pepper says kindly. 

“Seriously, Nat, thank you. You know I'll do whatever it takes to protect this kid.” Clint adds. 

"I know you will. And so will Sam. That's why we chose you guys to name him after, so y'all better not mess this up." Natasha says, glaring at both men. 

"If I do, I'll have you to answer for, and that's enough motivation for me." Sam says, holding his hands up in surrender. He claps Steve on the shoulder. "Thanks, man." 

Steve just nods in acknowledgment.

“Congratulations, guys.” Bruce adds seriously, to a “Hear, hear!” from Thor.

It seems that only Sam sees the double meaning in Steve’s son’s first name and later he makes eye contact with Steve to confirm it. After a weary smile from Steve, Sam nods approvingly. 

“It really is a great name, Cap.” He claps him on the shoulder again. Well done, again.” 

“Thanks Sam.”

As the sun rises over the horizon of the Avengers compound and floods room ten of the medical wing with light, Natasha lays back in her bed and watches Steve carefully pass round James for everybody to hold. 

In the end, it doesn’t matter how they got here. It doesn’t matter how hard, or long, or how painful it was, because now they are here, with their son, healthy and beautiful. And Natasha knows that whatever comes after this, she will have what it takes to defeat it, and she will come out victorious. She knows this because now she has found within herself a new, incomparable strength.

Natasha Romanoff has found her family.


End file.
